Chapter 041 The truth about the jade mine

After returning home that night, Zhao Yucheng knocked on the door of his father's study.

Zhao Zan seemed to have been waiting for him for a long time and was not surprised at his arrival.

"You are here, sit down." Zhao Zan walked around the desk and sat down at the tea table.

Zhao Yucheng paused and sat down opposite him.

"How long has it been since we, father and son, sat down and had a good chat?" Zhao Zan picked up the kettle and poured him a cup of tea. "I remember that you like Dongting spring tea very much, so I asked a friend to bring some for you. Try it."

Zhao Yucheng's expression eased a little, and he picked up the teacup and put it to his nose to smell it. The fresh tea fragrance made his mind clearer.

"It smells good."

Zhao Zan smiled gently, "As long as my son likes it."

After drinking a cup of tea, Zhao Yucheng tapped the wall of the teacup with one finger. Facing his father who was rarely gentle, he suddenly couldn't say those questioning words.

"You hurried to find me, but what did the prince say?" Zhao Zan took the initiative.

Zhao Yucheng stopped and pursed his lips.

After hesitating for a moment, he told Zhao Zan what King Yong asked him in the tavern today.

"Why do you think King Yong asked this?" Zhao Zan asked.

The doubts in Zhao Yucheng's heart continued to grow. Zhao Zan was really too calm. Wasn't he afraid that King Yong would be angry with him because of the town defense?

Putting aside these doubts, Zhao Yucheng tentatively said, "The prince has some doubts about the town guard, and from what I have seen of him in the past few days, he is a very thoughtful and far-sighted person. I think he has already obtained evidence that is unfavorable to the town guard."

Zhao Zan's expression did not change, and he slowly poured him a cup of tea: "Are you done?"

Zhao Yucheng nodded.

"You are right, but this is only one of the reasons." Zhao Zan said, "Do you remember the night when the town guard suddenly summoned me to the town government office in the middle of the night? Do you know what the prince said to him that day?"

Zhao Yucheng raised his head suddenly, his heart pounding.

Zhao Zan went out immediately after returning that night, and did not return until he left the mansion in the morning. Moreover, according to his observation, the whole town office has become extremely busy, and many faces that are often seen and not seen have become active, often coming in and out of the mansion.

He was very curious about what the town guard said to his father that night, and after the incident in Nangang Fishing Village, he was very worried that his father would go astray.

Now, his father is going to tell him everything?

Zhao Zan said, "It seems that you have thought about this a lot."

Zhao Yucheng pursed his lips, did not comment, and looked at him attentively.

"Forget it, since you want to know so much, I will tell you, this matter is very serious, and I don't want to hide it from you." As he said, he walked slowly to the desk, raised his right hand, and placed it on the Pixiu next to the pen holder.

"This Pixiu was given to me as a gift when the governor took office. Everyone in the mansion knows that I treasure it very much. Even the cleaning servants are not allowed to touch it."

Zhao Yucheng nodded. He was the only one in the mansion who could enter and leave the study at will, but he had been warned from childhood to adulthood that he had never touched the Pixiu.

Zhao Zan opened his five fingers, grabbed the Pixiu's head and twisted it to the right. The head actually moved half a centimeter. Then he twisted it to the left again, and the Pixiu's head returned to its original place.

A slight shaking sound was heard, and a secret compartment appeared on the wall behind.

It turned out that this Pixiu was the switch to open the secret compartment. No wonder Zhao Zan strictly prohibited others from touching it.

Zhao Zan walked to the secret compartment, took out a box, put it on the table, and opened it carefully.

When Zhao Yucheng saw what was inside, his doubts deepened.

"What is this?"

Zhao Zan signaled him to take it out and have a look.

There was only a small booklet with yellowed and wrinkled pages in the box. On the cover of the booklet were written the words "Xia Shi Village Genealogy". When he opened it, he saw that it really recorded all the villagers of Xia Shi Village, including their names, family size, addresses, house areas, real estate rights under their names, etc.

"This was handed to me by the town guard that night." Zhao Zan said.

Zhao Yucheng asked in confusion, "What is he going to do?"

Zhao Zan closed the box and put it back into the secret compartment while saying, "King Yong has never been interested in state affairs and has been obsessed with business. His private properties are spread across towns and cities across the country. It is no exaggeration to say that every passing minute and second counts as hundreds of taels of silver to him, but this time he has become an imperial envoy and came to this small place, Shifang Town."

"Does he have another purpose in coming here?" Zhao Yucheng frowned.

Zhao Zan held the Pixiu's head and closed the secret compartment, then sat down at the tea table. Hearing this, he looked at Zhao Yucheng and said, "If I were you, I would pretend that I knew nothing and study hard to pass the imperial examination as soon as possible. This is the most important thing for you right now."

"But I already know this."

Zhao Zan sighed, "I have been trying to cultivate your curiosity since you were a child, hoping that you will always maintain a spirit of exploration for new things, but I forgot that being too curious is not a good thing at all."

He paused and looked at Zhao Yucheng. Seeing that he did not hesitate, he continued, "There is a jade mine in Shifang Town, which is said to be the largest since the founding of the country, right under Yuxu Mountain."

"Jade mine?" Zhao Yucheng murmured: "The prince is after the jade mine? How is that possible? He is so rich, if it is just a jade mine, he can just send someone to be in charge, why does he have to come here in person?"

"The jade mine was discovered several years ago, and people from the court have been secretly responsible for digging it. Now those people have discovered that the jade mine extends to the stratum of Xia Shi Village, about dozens of miles underground. The amount of jade is quite large and the quality is rich. The color is pure and rare."

Zhao Yucheng's heart moved: "So after the jade mine is dug up, the people of Xia Shi Village will have to move their village?"

"Yes, digging jade mines is not difficult. The most difficult thing is how to make everyone in a village willingly move away from the place where they take root."

Zhao Yucheng nodded.

Shifang Town is located in the southeast of the country, in a remote corner. Even the change of dynasties has not changed much in the past hundred years. Natural disasters and man-made disasters are all under control. It is not a good place to live.

Moreover, the villagers live a stable life. The network of people and emotional development of their ancestors are all here. Many people would rather die than leave.

"The court is worried that taking tough measures will cause riots, so it sent imperial envoys here. His Royal Highness Prince Yong is not so much an imperial envoy as he is here to clean up the mess.

Zhao Yucheng nodded: "I understand."

"The reason the town governor summoned me to his mansion that day was because the prince told him all the inside story, and now the town governor has entrusted this matter to me." Zhao Zan said.

Zhao Yucheng frowned: "Father is just an assistant in charge of criminal and civil cases, how can he push you out?"

"The town governor is my superior, and it is my duty to ask me to do anything."

"But..."

"Okay." Zhao Zan interrupted him: "I have said enough today, you should rest. I said this just to let you know that the only thing that King Yong really cares about right now is how to properly resettle the people of Xiashi Village, so he will make a big deal out of a small matter and let the town governor Yu lightly forgive the minor crime."

Zhao Yucheng came out of the study and looked up at the sky. The darkness was dotted with countless stars, which was very dazzling.

He looked at the stars, unable to come back to his senses for a long time.

On the other side, Yuan Ming just walked to the entrance of the alley and saw Yang Chao waiting there. The two came to Yang Chao's house together.

Song Yan and Ji Qingyue were busy in the kitchen, but surprisingly, Ji Qingyue was the chef and Song Yan was just helping out.

Yang Chao said embarrassedly: "Brother Yue said he wanted us to taste his cooking skills, and Yanzi and I couldn't resist."

"It should be." Yuan Ming took off his gown, hung it on the clothesline outside, and walked into the kitchen.

"Yuan Ming is here?" Song Yan was picking vegetables, and turned around and saw Yuan Ming.

Ji Qingyue turned around when she heard the voice and saw Yuan Ming, she smiled happily: "Husband!"

Yuan Ming responded and said to Song Yan: "I just heard about the accident. It's a pity, but it doesn't matter. You and Brother Yang are still young. You will definitely have children when the time comes."

Song Yan's eyes dimmed when she heard it, but soon returned to normal. She was originally an optimist and knew very well what she wanted, otherwise she would not have firmly supported Yang Chao when everyone opposed him borrowing money to open a store.

"Don't worry, I'm fine." Song Yan smiled slightly.

Ji Qingyue took Yuan Ming's hand: "Husband, come and help me, don't say those unhappy things."